Led Astray
by Crimson Tranquility
Summary: When Team Hawk returns from a mission with a prisoner, Sasuke is surprised to find out it is none other than Sakura.After Suigetsu persuades him to keep her captive,Sasuke finds himself falling for her,and this time,things aren't so innocent between them.
1. In Love With The Prisoner

**Author's Note**: Hey everyone! Okey dokey here's the dealio, like many of the animes I have come to watch, I stumbled upon Naruto by accident and absolutely L-O-V-E it! I mean the series was always on t.v. but I kinda thought it was a little kid show (and frankly Naruto's orange jumpsuit turned me off) but I am happy to say that I was wrong and the show has many serious themes that make it exciting! I especially fell in love with Sasuke and felt so sorry for the whole Sasuke/ Sakura couple. :'(

Now about this story, it will be a Sasuke and Sakura pair since I love that couple and hope that they get together soon! (PLEASE!) Anyways, sometimes you just start thinking about a series a whole lot and so I was thinking a lot about Sasuke and Sakura and how tragic it was that they had to part ways, so much so that I began to dream about the couple and somehow got this fic in my head.

**WARNING**: This story will have mature themes that fall into the "Rated T" category. It might go up later on but I'll let you know.

**Spoiled Alert**: To play it safe, I'm going to say that this fic is up to date with the manga. Especially up to Naruto 404 Falcon and Akatsuki, with the truth about Itachi revealed and everything.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto (or his hideous orange jumpsuit)

Okay! Enjoy! And please review and tell me if I should continue! :D

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**Chapter 1: In Love With The Prisoner**

Sasuke Uchiha walked through the large mansion where he, Team Hawk, and his loyal subjects resided. The area reminded him a lot of the old way the Uchiha clan lived. The small buildings that were all in the area of the mansion seemed to together make a small village.

Things had quieted down quite a bit for Sasuke since the demise of Akatsuki. Since Team Hawk was only part of the organization for their own benefit, when the time came to sever ties with the shady group, it had been easy to tell Akatsuki they weren't interested in being affiliated with them any longer. Of course Sasuke had to be the one to "persuade" Akatsuki not to interfere with his plans to attack Konoha.

Since then, the last Sasuke heard of Akatsuki was that it was dying out without a singular leader and the members were slowly getting captured.

But Sasuke had been busy himself. He had been trying to plan revenge on Konoha while also making sure to see his ultimate goal of reviving the Uchiha clan. It had started with getting people together to acknowledge the Uchiha name; which was easier than he had thought. Turns out, there were plenty of people who wanted to be able to serve the honorary Uchiha clan and so Sasuke was blessed with many loyal advisors and subjects.

Sasuke sighed as he entered the kitchen. A maid was getting breakfast together and squealed in surprise when she saw Sasuke come in.

Sasuke didn't even flinch when he heard the glass in her hand fall to the floor and shatter.

"Oh! Sasuke-sama, I didn't even hear you come in. I-I-I'll clean this right up! In the meantime, can I get you s-s-s-something to eat?" The maid stuttered in embarrassment and blushed as she looked at her handsome master.

"No, that's alright. I'm not hungry anyway." Why did women all insist on acting like this in front of him? It was so… annoying.

He left the kitchen and walked outside. It was about noon time and he rested against a large rock. He was still waiting for the members of Team Hawk: Suigetsu, Jugo, and Karin, to return to the mansion. They had gone out to run some errands for him about two days ago and were expected to arrive any minute now.

After killing Itachi, all Sasuke thought about was enacting revenge on Konoha for the miserable life it had forced upon his older brother. He had gathered Team Hawk together long before that to actually find Itachi but now that Itachi was dead, Team Hawk stayed with Sasuke to aid him in his revenge. Plus each member was really together in a team for their own benefit, Sasuke knew that.

It really didn't matter to him. Suigetsu, Juugo, and Karin had decided to stay with Sasuke because they really didn't have anything better to do.

Sasuke heard rustling of leaves and voices as he turned his head to look into the shrubbery of the forest.

"You idiot! How dare you say that to me! I am ten times as pretty looking as her!"

"Whatever, you bitch! I can't believe you punched me! You're such a bitter, jealous, ol- OUCH!"

Sasuke sighed deeply and closed his eyes. Suigetsu and Karin were at it again it seemed. The two never were able to avoid fighting with each other. Suigetsu and Karin were both the same age as Sasuke while Juugo was two years older than them. However, no matter their close ages, Sasuke didn't think of any of them as friends, only allies.

Karin was the first to walk out of the darkness of the forest. She was followed closely by Juugo and Suigetsu, who was limping slightly.

Sasuke didn't open his eyes.

Karin stopped when she saw Sasuke resting against the rock. His dark hair fell in his face and she felt a sudden urge to jump on him and kiss him everywhere. However her daydreams were soon interrupted when she remembered that they were not alone and that if she had attempted such a thing, no doubt Sasuke would have simply pushed her away from him.

"How'd it go?" Sasuke questioned in a bored voice without bothering to move.

Juugo answered. "Everything went as planned. We gained resources from the neighboring village and they have agreed not to attempt to resist as long as we don't attack them."

"Hmm. Good."

Karin took a step forward and began to yell. "Sasuke, stop making me go on missions with that this idiot!" She pointed towards Suigetsu, who was hidden behind Jugo's large form.

Sasuke scowled as he opened one eye. Karin really got on his nerves with her constant yelling and especially when she threw herself at him, quite literally. But she had special powers that were needed, he had to admit.

When all of them were together, they were an impressive team, which was why all of the subjects who resided around the Uchiha mansion respected and obeyed the entire team, most of all Sasuke's word.

Sasuke had grown from the small, rash boy in Konoha into a strong young man. He wore traditional Japanese clothes with the Uchiha emblem proudly on his back.

Out of all of the members of Team Hawk, Karin was the one whom most of the subjects avoided and refused to do chores for. It had a lot to do with her attitude towards them. She was snobby and harsh with her commands, not allowing anything less than complete perfection. Karin was a young woman with bright, fiery red hair and eyes that matched. Her hair was unkempt on one side with the other straight and combed. She wore a plain white shirt that was open at her stomach. She had large hips and wore tight black shorts.

Karin's personality clashed immensely with the other member of Team Hawk, Suigetsu. Suigetsu was the member of the team that was the most fun to be around. He was constantly making jokes and had an easygoing personality that made him easy to talk to. He had grayish-blue hair that went to his shoulders and was dressed casually in a black tank top with white pants. His many hobbies including annoying Karin, collecting swords, and annoying Karin.

The final member of Team Hawk was Juugo. Juugo was the strong and silent type, except when he had urges to kill, in which he turned into an immensely strong and brutal type. The only one who could control him was Sasuke. Juugo was mostly quiet unless he had something important to say. With bright orange hair and bronzed skin, he had a strong built form with a very gentle heart. Juugo truly hated the other side of him that killed innocent people and so his true personality of being kind was the complete opposite of his alter-ego.

"Yeah, Sasuke, it's not like I enjoy going on missions with Miss-Bitch-of-the-Universe herself!" Suigetsu's voice exclaimed somewhere behind Jugo.

Juugo mediated between the two. "We are all part of the same team, stop bickering you two. We all need each other, remember that."

Karin crossed her arms in front of her chest and huffed. Then she suddenly remembered something and pointed to Suigetsu. "Sasuke, this idiot here bought along a prisoner."

Sasuke looked up. "A prisoner?" That was something new. They usually never brought prisoners back to the tiny make-shift Uchiha village unless they could be of use to them.

"Yeah, evidently he's in love with the girl or something. The pervert was trying to see her bathing but she covered herself once she was aware of people watching and attacked. Juugo saved that idiot," Karin said, gesturing towards Suigetsu, "because the girl had good aim. Of course _I_ say we should have just let her kill him so we wouldn't have to deal…"

Sasuke tuned out the rest of Karin's annoying rant. He got to his feet. Suigetsu walked forward holding a woman's limp body in his arms. "I'm not in love with her! I just thought she was cute. Yeah, we managed to knock her unconscious otherwise she obviously wouldn't come…" Suigetsu murmured to himself.

Sasuke gasped. The woman had pink hair and was wearing a red uniform. On her head was a Konoha shinobi head protector. Sasuke was sure if the woman was awake, her eyes would have reveled emerald green eyes because the young woman was… it was none other than his former team member, Sakura Haruno.

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Dum dum dum! Review and let me know if I should continue... things will definitely heat up with Sasuke and Sakura in coming chapters!

A quick note about the characters: I am trying very much to keep the characters _in_ character as much as possible. However, the characters will progress in my fic and therefore might seem a little OOC here and there later on but that's just how I see them growing. On another note (and I do apologize for all the notes but hey, I can't help it) the characters of Team Hawk are kinda hard for me to write about since they have not yet appeared in the anime so I'm pretty much going off of their personalities in the manga and then creating the rest with my own ideas. Thanks a bunch and please review!


	2. Lucky Guy

**Author's Note**: Hi everyone! I just want to quickly thank all of you who reviewed and persuaded me to continue the story! Make sure to read and review so that I know you wanna read more!

Quick Notes: In case I make some references to these things:

Kunoichi- girl ninja

Shinobi- boy ninja

The Hidden Leaf Village is also known as Konoha.

***IMPORTANT***Also, since this story will have more adult themes in it, I am making Sasuke and Sakura both 20 years old. By the way, I am so pumped for this fic and I have numerous, awesome scenes (in my opinion,) written out with a lot of Sasuke and Sakura. I'm debating about whether or not I might have to put up the rating but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it!

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**Chapter 2: Lucky Guy**

"_Sakura-san, I really wish you'd reconsider staying in the village with me," the man grasped a smooth strand of her pink hair in his fingers._

_Sakura felt herself blush as she continued to monitor his pulse. He was a wounded Shinobi that she had been nursing back to health as part of her mission. The man was about her age and was extremely handsome with dark blonde hair that fell into his clear blue eyes. Not only was he kind and sweet, but he truly cared about her opinions and managed to make her smile every time she saw him._

_But… Sakura had her duties to complete. The man promised to make her happy and Sakura had no doubt that he would be able to but there it was again. That annoying little irritation in her head that made her feel like she wasn't allowed to settle down yet. Because she had a home to return to and friends who were waiting._

_Konoha, the Hidden Leaf Village, was more than just Sakura's hometown. She wanted to do everything and anything to always protect the small area. Hometowns were like that; they had strange holds on you, holds that you just couldn't break. But it was so much more than that for her._

_Besides her blood-related family being there, there were her friends and ninja comrades who had become like a second family to her. Although Tsunade-sama scared her to no end, she had come to greatly admire the woman who had put her through vigorous training to become the successful medical ninja she was now. The skills she had acquired from the legendary Sannin were very much needed and desired by many villages, which was why Sakura had been sent to this small village._

_Tsunade-sama, the fifth Hokage and present leader of Konoha, had sent Sakura on the solo mission of going to a nearby ally village that needed some medical service. Their ninja had fought and won against three other hostile villagers that threatened to destroy them. However their victory came at a terrible price; most of the soldiers were unable to even sit up, let alone help rebuild the destroyed village after the various battles._

_Sakura had been sent to nurse and heal them back to health. And she had. Working diligently day after day, night after night, Sakura was able to heal the men and women after only two weeks of being there. _

_She had been given an allotted time of six months to finish the mission. Sakura wondered why Tsunade-sama had given her so much time but Tsunade-sama had insisted that when Sakura was done, she go and relax and get some training in. Evidently, the entire village thought she was becoming a workaholic and could use the R & R._

_When Sakura had tried to renegotiate the required vacation time, Tsunade-sama hadn't been very… accommodating, to say the least. After she had thrown nearly every piece of furniture at Sakura, including her desk, which was pilled with large stacks of documents and missions, Tsunade-sama had proceeded to yell at Sakura at the top of her lungs about how she couldn't stand "brat ninjas who couldn't take orders." _

_Poor Naruto had to report to Tsunade-sama after Sakura had left. Sakura shuddered. She vaguely wondered if he got away alive, she was forced to leave on her mission right after leaving Tsunade-sama's office. Even if the woman was in her fifties, Tsunade-sama was still as strong, not to mention frightening, as ever._

"_Sakura-san?" a soft voice made brought her out of her daze as a hand gently touched her cheek._

_She looked up at the handsome man who was gazing at her intensely. Sighing deeply, Sakura got up from the chair at the side of the man's bed and pulled her medical supplies together. "I'm sorry, I guess my mind was somewhere else."_

"_Hmm. I know the feeling," he said as he smiled at her back._

"_Well, it looks like you're progressing fine and will be up and about in no time!" She smiled at him in what she hoped to be an encouraging smile before he reminded her of his question._

"_So, I guess that's it then?" he looked down as his hands in his lap as he sat up on the medical cot. "You'll be leaving today?"_

_Sakura smiled sadly at him before she leaned forward and kissed him gently on the cheek. "Yes, I'll be leaving."_

_She had just gotten to the door when she heard him laugh. "Sakura-san, he'll be a lucky guy." She turned to look at him in confusion._

"_The one that gets your heart."_

_

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_

_Sakura sighed deeply as she sat down on a nearby rock and began to pull off her red kunoichi uniform. She was exhausted from completing her latest mission. And now she had five and a half months of training and relaxation to look forward to, she thought sarcastically. _

_She tore off her head protector with more force than was necessary as she fumed about how annoying it was that everyone thought she needed to relax so badly. Her fists clenched angrily as she continued to undress to get ready to bathe._

_After healing the ninja at the small village she had been assigned to, Sakura had every intention to return to Konoha and beg Tsunade-sama to give her more missions instead of the impending "task" of resting. She decided to stop and bathe when she came to a secluded area in the forest with a large waterfall area._

_She had just stripped down to the cloth that was wrapped tightly around her chest and her panties when she sensed the presence of others._

"_You pervert! We don't have time for you to stop and fulfill your needs right now, Suigetsu! Do it on your own time, idiot!" a harsh woman's voice filled Sakura's ears._

"_Damn it, you hag! Would you shut up? She'll hear you! No one is making you stay!" a man's voice snapped back._

"_Looks like she already heard you," another man's voice calmly stated._

_By this time, Sakura had pulled her shirt and shorts back on and leaped towards the bushes where she sensed the strange chakras._

_There were three people standing there in shock. A woman with large hips and a scowl was standing the furthest, her hands resting on her hips with an air of conceit._

_Next to her was a man with bright orange hair and a large muscular physique who was gazing at the flying Sakura in shock as she sailed towards them with her shurikens drawn._

_The final person was also a male. He was lean and had silvery-blue hair. He was currently crouched by the bushes as he tried to hide. Surprise was written across his face._

_Throwing her own chakra into her punches and kicks, Sakura managed to land a few hits on the lean male while the other two scattered away from the shurikens._

_As she turned her attention to him though, he was suddenly gone and reappeared behind her, his arms around her body, pinning her arms to her sides._

"_Mmm," he breathed in, "you're even softer than you look. Man, I wonder how you'd be when I-"_

_Sakura cut him off by lifting her foot up and stomping harshly on his foot. The man immediately released her as he began hopping up and down in pain, clutching his foot._

_Turning around, Sakura saw that the other two had returned. The woman was glaring at her in disgust while the other male was looking at the man in pain._

"_Suigetsu, let's go. That's enough," the taller male said._

"_No!" the one in pain gasped out, "she might be a handful but… get her!"_

_Sakura's eyes widened. Just who were these guys anyway?_

_The woman snorted. "Hah! What is with you, Suigetsu? If you desire a woman so badly, get one of the ones back home to sleep with you. You know they all practically worship us."_

"_Shut up, I said I wanted her," the lean male said as he recovered from the painful hit. Sakura was still facing the other two when he leaped towards her from behind._

_Sensing his chakra, she quickly sidestepped and filled her fist with energy as she threw it towards his face. But he surprised her and caught her hand easily._

"_Hey babe, you might have gotten me by surprise back there but don't think I'm this weak," he winked at her._

_Glaring, Sakura threw some more shurikens his way, making him release her fist in order to dodge them. She turned back warily to face the other two. They hadn't attacked her yet but they all were traveling together so if things got worse for the lean man, they would probably rush in._

_Sakura decided to attack them first instead of giving them the chance when she might not be prepared. She quickly did a replication jutsu and charged towards them._

_The two looked at her in surprise as she jumped in the air. The female kicked at her, but only her clone vanished as Sakura appeared behind the woman and punched her square in the back. She fell to her knees, coughing and gasping._

_The other male was now ready to fight as he lunged towards her. Sakura let him put her arms around her body as she quickly rearranged her arms and pulled him to the ground with a loud bang. He groaned on his back but made no move to get up._

_Sakura straightened up and dusted her hands together as she smiled. Three on one. Not bad, she thought. Just then she felt her world spin as she became woozy and fell backwards. _

_Oh no! She had forgotten to be careful to preserve her chakra. She had spent the better part of it those past two weeks taking care of the injured ninjas in that village and had been exhausted. It was supposed to take her quite some time in order to regain her strength back completely and then these three had showed up._

_As the world around her turned to black, she felt a male's arms catch her._

"_Well we can't leave her here," was the last thing she heard._

* * *

Sasuke was having trouble concentrating with the amount of anger he was feeling right now. Not only had his team brought a prisoner with them, it turned out to be his former teammate, Sakura.

"Again," his voice barked.

"Erm… what?" Suigetsu grinned stupidly at him.

Sasuke closed his eyes in an effort to control the urge to just throttle the people in front of him. "Again… explain again why you brought her."

Sasuke and Team Hawk were assembled in one of the many rooms in the Uchiha manor. For Sasuke, the entire day had been ruined by Suigetsu's little stunt so he felt no pleasure in training outside or doing anything else for that matter. So they had all went back into the large mansion and brought Sakura to one of the guest rooms, where Suigetsu had laid her to rest on the bed there. Then they all went to the room next door to talk.

Sasuke's fist was clenched. Relaxing was definitely not his strong suit. Out of all of the women Suigetsu could have brought, he had brought Sakura. Sakura, his little, annoying, love-struck former teammate. Sasuke hadn't bothered to give her a closer examination while she was unconscious. He assumed she was probably still the annoying little girl from his past. He didn't have time to waste around with her.

"Well, you see, I just saw this pretty shade of pink while we were coming back so I went to investigate and there she was, stripped down to her chest bindings and panties, ready to take a bathe! I couldn't get over how gorgeous she was so I had to take a closer look-"

"Oh, please!" Karin interrupted rudely, "you wanted to see her bathing and because you couldn't do it quietly enough, _she_," Karin gestured accusingly towards the sleeping girl on the bed, "attacked you."

"Us. She attacked us, Karin," Juugo reminded her quietly.

Karin seethed.

Sasuke's dark aura fell around the room in dangerous waves. "So," he began in a furious whisper, "you're telling me you bought her here because you are enthralled with her?"

He may have meant it as a question but it came out as a statement.

Suigetsu looked at him and grinned again, as he tried to dispel the fear of the dark aura.

"Yeah, more or less. See unlike all of you, I wouldn't mind having someone else to keep warm with and enjoy life with," he laughed.

Sasuke scowled. Juugo shook his head.

Karin blanched. "You idiot! You can't force her to like you and frankly, who would?"

Suigetsu turned his head to her. "Listen, you old hag, I know that you can't get anyone to stay with you at night but _I_ prefer to have a nice warm body wi-"

"You jerk! I can get a man if I wanted to!"

Suigetsu pretended to tell a secret to Juugo. "Yeah, sure she can. But I wonder if she'd have to immobilized him first? Of course he'd have to be blind! Who would want to be in bed with _that_?"

"Asshole! I heard that! And I'll have you know I am very desirable!" Karin spat nastily.

"Quiet," Sasuke's voice commanded.

The two shut their mouths. Although Sasuke wasn't the official leader of Team Hawk or anything, the other three were assembled because of him and listened to his words in order to avoid his wrath. It was as Suigetsu liked to put it, to him, Sasuke liked to talk like he was in charge. Unspoken, he was their boss.

Sasuke leaned his head back. He was sitting on a couch in the living room. Suigetsu, Karin, and Juugo were all standing up.

Sasuke had to think about this. Now that she was here, should they just try to return her somewhere? But she was unconscious still and as Sasuke had felt, her chakra was low. He felt himself grow enraged again. What was she thinking traveling alone with barely any chakra left? What an idiot. She was just begging to be killed.

Plus, although he was Team Hawk's unspoken leader, that didn't exactly mean he could force anyone to do anything. Meaning of course, if Suigetsu wanted to keep her, he technically could. Sasuke felt his fist clench tighter, if that were possible. For some reason, the idea of Suigetsu wanting Sakura bothered him. Perhaps it was because he knew Suigetsu's reputation.

Think, Sasuke, think.

Okay, so if they kept her, what benefits could it bring?

She was a Konoha ninja, and Sasuke had every intention of enacting his revenge on the small village he once called home.

Then it came to him. If Sakura was here, no doubt that Naruto, being the obsessed idiot he was, would try to find her. With Naruto out of Konoha, it would be undoubtedly easier to destroy the little village. Then Sasuke would deal with Naruto.

"We'll keep her," Sasuke said.

Juugo raised his eyebrow. Suigetsu clapped his hands together.

"WHAT?" Karin shrieked. "B-b-but why?"

Sasuke again felt an urge to plummet his teammate into the nearby wall. Hmm, his anger control was interesting. "She is from Konoha and we can perhaps use her as blackmail."

"How do you know she's from Konoha?" Suigetsu asked.

Sasuke lifted Sakura's forehead protector that had been resting on the table after Suigetsu had removed the heavy metal object from her head. The leaf symbol on the front shined brightly.

"Oh," Suigetsu mumbled.

Karin looked distressed. First Suigetsu, now Sasuke, too? What was with that girl? "Come on, Sasuke, we don't need her for blackmail. We can destroy the village without her."

"She stays."

Suigetsu grinned mischievously at Sasuke. "Why'd ya change your mind so fast, boss?"

"Hn."

"Oh great, back to one word responses. No really, tell us!" Suigetsu said enthusiastically.

* * *

Sakura groaned as she slowly opened her eyes. She still felt completely drained. Pushing herself up into a sitting position, she was surprised to find that she was lying on a bed. Looking around her, she saw that she was in a large room that she had never seen before.

_What was going on?_ Then it hit her. The last thing she remembered after leaving the injured village was that she was going to bathe in the waterfall and then she had fought against three strangers.

"_Well, we can't leave her here."_

She gasped. They had taken her with them. Moving as quietly as she could, she got off of the large bed. Somehow, she needed to escape. Although she had won back there in the forest, Sakura had sensed the three's chakra levels. There was no doubt that they weren't fighting her seriously otherwise she could have definitely been injured in a three to one battle.

As she tiptoed to the door and out into the wooden hallway, she froze when she heard a familiar voice. So familiar yet different, it hurt.

"She stays."

_It can't be._ There was no way. The world around her began to spin. Concentrating deeply, she forgot all about trying to escape and headed towards where she heard the voice. She stood in the doorway of a beautiful living room. The entire mansion was a gorgeous traditional Japanese masterpiece.

She heard the voice murmur in annoyance. "It doesn't matter…"

Then another male's voice. "Why?"

A female's voice cut in. "Because the princess is awake and listening to everything we say now!"

Then four sets of eyes traveled to the door to lock onto her. She could only see the striking onyx ones and nearly lost herself in their depth.

* * *

"So you're awake, babe!" Suigetsu exclaimed, his eyes running over the girl's body. She seemed to be in a sort of trance and was staring at Sasuke. Suigetsu turned to look at him. He was looking at her with indifference, like he usually did.

She took a few steps into the room, her eyes unmoving from their position on Sasuke.

"How ya feeling?" Suigetsu tried again to get a response out of the girl. _What was with chicks and Sasuke anyway?_

She took one more step into the room before her pink lips opened. Suigetsu leaned forward to hear what she had to say. He still hadn't heard her speak yet.

"Sasuke-kun…" her voice was a whisper.

The room was so quiet, a pin drop could heard.

Suigetsu's eyes fastened on the girl. "Sasuke-kun?"

Karin was livid. "_Sasuke-kun_!" Her voice was accusing as she turned to glare at Sasuke.

And then Sakura's body slackened and she fell forward.

The only indication that Sasuke left his spot on the couch was the displacement of air as he moved forward and caught the girl in his arms. Just as quickly, he tossed her body to Suigetsu, who quickly held his arms out to catch her. Sasuke returned to his position on the couch, a second later.

* * *

Sasuke relaxed back into his prior position only to feel his teammates' eyes on him.

"She knows you," Juugo said softly.

"She _knows_ you!" Karin's voice was seething as she spat and looked at the slumbering girl in Suigetsu's arms.

Suigetsu was frozen. "She knows _you._"

Sasuke scowled angrily. This little game was getting annoying. "Yes, she knows me. We were…teammates."

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Yeah so this chapter wasn't my favorite but I felt it was needed for background info and getting to know the characters and how they will be portrayed in my fic. Soooo tell me what you think! How did you like it? Did you not like it? (Why the HELL didn't you like it!) Just kidding haha! Anyways, if you don't read my rambling or rants, I'm sure bold-faced will get your attention. So please **review.** Did that work? Did it get your attention? :D

**IMPORTANT EXTRA NOTE:** I just wanted to add something about my characters again. They will be in character meaning that I will portray them as close to their actual personalities as the manga and anime. That being said, I feel it's important for there to be character development since we all grow up and everything (except Naruto who still wears a hideous orange jumpsuit, though I must admit, it is getting better.) Sasuke and Sakura will act and be according to how I feel they have grown up since I have made them both 20 years old in order to introduce mature themes and ideas into the story. And seriously, I CAN'T WAIT to reveal later chapters with those awesome Sasuke and Sakura scenes in them. You. will. be. stunned.

Thanks again and BE TRUE AND REVIEW! - yes, my lame attempt at rhyming.

Chapter 2: Lucky Guy


	3. An Unknown Dream

**Author's Note**: Thank you everyone for the interest in this fic! I'm glad you're all enjoying it!

I intend to update sooner if there is interest in the fic. Enjoy and please review, review, review!

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**Chapter 3: An Unknown Dream**

"… so you were genin on the same team. Wow….so you two must have spent a lot of time together… I guess," Suigetsu finished quietly as his eyes darted towards the door, no doubt thinking of the pink-haired kunoichi, who was lying in the guest room next door.

Sasuke and the others were still seated in the large room. Sasuke had his head thrown back as he rested it against the back of the couch, trying with all of the chakra in him NOT to just kill his teammates, who, unbelievably, seemed to get more and more irritating as the day went on.

It seemed like they had been there all day while Team Hawk asked close to every question imaginable about Sasuke and the pink-haired woman in the next room after she had passed out.

Some were legitimate questions. Others were… as Sasuke put it, annoying.

"How did you two meet?"

"Is she strong?"

"Why are we keeping her?"

"What _kind_ of team were you two?"

"Why did you leave her?"

"Does she care about you?"

"Do you care about her?"

"Why is her hair that color?"

"Do you think she'd go out with me?"

Karin shot up from her seated position at that one. "Suigetsu, can you just keep it in your pants for once?" she shrieked loudly.

Sasuke clenched his teeth. Karin's voice seemed to have that affect on him. His ears were still ringing from her last rant about how she couldn't believe someone like that "pink-haired brat" would have to stay here with them. Suigetsu suggested she felt threatened now that there was another "chick" who knew Sasuke well-enough and was prettier than her. To that, Karin had answered with a punch to Suigetsu's nose.

Truth be told, Sasuke was having trouble understanding what to do now, too. When Sakura had walked in, Sasuke had felt… strange. He didn't know what exactly the feeling he felt was but the emotions _she_ felt were evident on her face. _She had always been easy to read_, Sasuke thought.

When she had wandered into the room, her bright emerald eyes were fixated on him.

He looked at her with indifference.

She had trudged towards him slowly, as if she couldn't bring herself to move faster even if she wanted to. Sasuke had seen flashes of so many emotions; shock, anger, fear, frustration, and something else. Something that made her say his name so softly, he almost didn't hear it.

Sasuke closed his eyes tightly and tried to ignore Suigetsu and Karin's irritating fight, as well as Juugo's pacifying suggestions.

Sasuke vaguely wondered if Sakura would act any differently than when they were younger. Was she still the annoying fan-girl who would follow him around?

He hadn't really looked at her carefully when she was awake but he could tell she had grown up. Her hair, for one, was longer and went a little past her shoulders. Her body, had also matured, which was what had caught Suigetsu's attention, Sasuke guessed.

It had been years since that encounter with his former team and now after seeing her after so many years, he felt something. An annoying something, he decided. Especially when she opened her mouth to say his name.

He wasn't sure what he had felt but when he saw her body fall forward, he moved to catch her. It wasn't surprising really, he had always protected her when they were younger, so he decided it was something engrained in his head now.

And so he caught her. It was all but a second he held her up in his arms.

A second and he felt his body burn from the contact. He threw her towards Suigetsu quickly and went to his prior position on the couch as he tried to work through the muddle of his thoughts.

Suigetsu suddenly got up and everyone's eyes snapped to him.

"I'm going to check up on her," he mumbled as he walked out of the room.

Sasuke's face twitched slightly into a frown before he left towards his own room.

Karin was positively seething. What the hell was going on here? She didn't really care that Suigetsu was smitten with the pink-haired kunoichi but she also wasn't pleased to find out that Sasuke and her were on the same team when they were younger. And it obviously had to mean something if Sasuke was keeping her, right?

Twirling a piece of flaming red hair around her fingers, Karin suddenly grinned. No, the girl wasn't important to Sasuke. The Sasuke she knew was a cold-hearted person who would do anything to fulfill his own purposes. Never had he shown any interest in a woman, even pushing Karin aside as well. And lord knows how many times she had been ready and willing! Plus, she was positive Sasuke was going to give in to her soon enough. He was, after all, a man now with certain needs that would have to be sated. There was no way Karin was going to let some little bitch with the wrong color hair steal him from her.

Karin began to laugh loudly to herself but stopped abruptly when she heard a clearing of a throat.

She turned her face and saw that Juugo was still sitting in the room. He looked at her strangely.

"What?" she snapped.

"Nothing," Juudo muttered before he turned to leave. He wasn't about to attempt to understand Karin. That could be dangerous.

* * *

Sakura groaned lightly as slowly tried to open her eyes. God, her head felt like it was splitting. Clamping a hand over her forehead, she moved to sit up and she suddenly felt a cold hand on her back, helping her into a sitting position.

Giving a sharp shriek, Sakura flew away from the contact and nearly fell off the bed as she gazed at the perpetrator.

A young man, his hand still outstretched towards her regarded her with surprise as he shifted back to plop himself in a chair by her bedside.

"Sorry, just wanted to help…" he murmured as he gazed at her.

Sakura quickly tried to piece together her thoughts from before.

Right, she fought this man and two others and they brought her to this place. And then she had awoken to find that Sasuke was here too…

"Who are you?" She asked angrily as she subconsciously got into a defensive position. "What the hell is going on here?"

Without waiting for an answer, Sakura made a quick move to jump off of the bed. Unfortunately, she was still weak from chakra exhaustion and the world spun around her quickly. Shutting her eyes tightly, she prepared to smack face first onto the hard surface of the floor.

But the impact never came.

She opened her emerald eyes slowly and pulled her head back in shock from the warm body that held her in his arms.

Suigetsu gave her a wry smile. "Did you think I would just let ya fall, princess?" he murmured to her.

Sakura blushed. She didn't want to look weak, especially in front of a stranger who was currently holding her captive! "I-I was fine, thanks."

The man quirked his eyebrow in question at that and Sakura turned her head away.

"Okay! So I might have needed some help…" she said with resignation.

Suigetsu blinked at the pink haired kunoichi before he burst into laughter. Sakura's felt the vibration of his booming chuckle from his chest and couldn't help but blush.

"Put me down!" she grumbled as he deposited her back on the bed gently before sitting on the foot of the bed.

"Sorry, babe! But ya know, I couldn't resist because you just looked so damn cute!" he leaned forward, his hands resting on the comforter on each side of Sakura's body. Smirking slightly, he moved his face closer to the pretty kunoichi.

Sakura gazed at the man in front of her with confusion. When his face crept closer to hers and his intention to kiss her became clearer, she pushed herself back against the headboard and placed her hands up against his chest in order to ward him off. "Please… don't," she whispered softly, her eyes gazing at him.

Suigetsu froze. Her voice, so sweet and soft, pleaded with him. Yet her eyes showed that she would still fight, should she have to. This girl… was beyond interesting. Shaking his head and chuckling to himself, Suigetsu leaned back into a relaxed position.

Sakura let out a breathe of relief. She didn't want to waste any more of her chakra fighting him off, especially since she needed it if she was going to escape this place. But first… first she needed some answers. "Who are you?"

Thoughts still on how innocent the kunoichi was, Suigetsu didn't hear her question until he turned to find her mesmerizing viridian eyes looking at him intently. "Err, what?" he muttered.

"I asked, who are you?"

"Suigetsu, at your service Don't hesitate to ask me for _anything_," he grinned at her as his eyes traveled down and back up after surveying her body.

Sakura blushed. His exaggeration of the word 'anything' hadn't gone unnoticed by her and the implication was obvious. "Listen, Suigetsu, was it? I really don't know why you brought me here but I won't be staying. Now I'll appreciate it if you showed me the way out."

He gave out a throaty laugh and leaned towards her again. "Now, now, there's no need to be cold. I brought you here because you are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid ey-"

Sakura effectively cut him off by snorting. "Oh, please. Do you really think I would fall for something like that?"

Blinking in surprise, Suigetsu couldn't help but smile at the woman. She definitely was proving to be a challenge and Suigetsu liked nothing more than a challenge. It was obvious she wasn't going to be persuaded by simple words into his bed. "I guess it won't. But before we go on discussing how truly wrong you are about me, I think it would be rude if you didn't tell me your name first."

She thought about it for a moment. He didn't seem to be dangerous and telling him her name wouldn't hurt her, right? "It's Sakura."

"Sa-ku-ra," he tried out the syllables on his tongue and decided he liked the sound of it.

"Yes! Sakura! Does it meet you approval?" she snapped sarcastically. All she wanted were some answers and to get rid of the thumping headache that seemed to be overtaking her at the moment.

He put up his hands in a pacifying gesture. "Ah, I see you have a temper. And yes, I do like it; although, I must admit I'd like it better when it's just you and me rolling around in the sheets," he leered at her mischievously.

Sakura's eyes widened by his less-than-subtle response and threw her open palm towards his cheek to slap him.

Fingers caught her wrist easily and he chuckled. "Easy there, sorry if I insulted ya, baby. Can't help my urges around a pretty thing like you so you'll have to excuse me," he winked at her.

Sakura pulled her wrist out of his hand roughly and turned her face away from him to stare at the wall.

More laughter met her ears and she tried to tune it out. She knew she was being immature by pouting like this, but damn it she just wanted to get some answers!

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry," he grinned at her. "I promise to keep my hands to myself… for now at least."

Sakura sighed. She wasn't going to get anywhere if she didn't talk to him. He was, after all, the one who captured her. "I am of no use to you so why are you keeping me here?"

Suigetsu shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not. Sasuke is."

That caught her attention. Green eyes locked onto the grayish-blue haired man. "Sas…Sasuke?" she mumbled in awe.

Suigetsu gave her a strange look before continuing with a serious look. "Yeah, you know, the guy you were on a genin team with. Sasuke decided that you would stay. And frankly, it's not as if you can escape in your condition right now anyway," he grinned at her widely and Sakura frowned slightly.

"Sasuke has no need for me," she muttered with her head down, her bangs covering her eyes.

Suigetsu raised his eyebrows to this. So, there was more to this story than the two cared to admit. A strange feeling of anger flooded through him and his eyes widened slightly at the sudden feeling.

Putting his arm around her shoulder in a companionship gesture, Suigetsu leaned back on the headboard, sitting next to Sakura on the bed. When she didn't make a move to remove his arm, Suigetsu relaxed.

"I don't know what happened between you and the boss, bab-… Sakura, but you're just going to have to stay here for a while," he said to her in an oddly comforting voice.

Sakura nodded and bit her lip. Suddenly she stiffened. "Suigetsu," she muttered in warning.

The gray-haired man chuckled and removed the hand that had slide to her waist.

* * *

A week had passed since the kunoichi had been captured. So far, Suigetsu had been keeping Sakura company and every time Sasuke passed the guest room, he could hear the two laughing or talking.

And for some irritating reason, Sasuke always had an urge to break something.

He hadn't bothered to see her partly because he believed she was still the annoying little girl he knew so long ago and partly because he had nothing to say to her.

Of course, if he wanted to see her, he would. Sasuke Uchiha could see anyone if he wanted to. He could do anything he wanted. Especially now that he had his own manor and was starting to put back his life the way it should be. And so if Sasuke wanted to see Sakura, there was nothing stopping him.

Yet the Uchiha didn't visit the girl. But of course… he could have if he really wanted to. At least that was what he told himself. And truthfully, he was confused and annoyed with himself for not having a reason why he couldn't walk through that door, damn it!

It was beyond frustrating. What the hell was stopping him?

For obvious reasons, Karin had avoided Sakura's room like the plague. She was less than pleased that a girl who knew Sasuke was staying with them. She was even more less than pleased to find Sasuke pausing on the outside of the pink-haired kunoichi's door a couple of times a day.

Juugo had met Sakura when he came in to give her a tray of food one day. They had instantly gotten along because of Sakura's magnetic personality and Juugo's calm and gentle one.

Sasuke seethed. He didn't even know why he was so irritated. Perhaps because he knew that he was avoiding Sakura for some strange reason and that she was avoiding him. It was impossible for the two not to run into each other for an entire week, what with Sasuke constantly walking through that hallway and Sakura leaving the room periodically to stretch her legs. It was obvious that she was avoiding him and it was driving Sasuke up a wall.

Suffice to say, the maids and people of the manor noticed the darker-than-normal chakra emitting from their strong leader, and they fled in different directions when they saw the handsomely dangerous man brooding in the Uchiha complex.

* * *

Sasuke slammed his door shut and fought the urge to break everything in the room and perhaps maybe even Suigetsu, who seemed to be getting on his nerves more than usual lately.

As he had been walking down the hallway of the room where Sakura was currently residing, he had heard Suigetsu's loud voice crack a joke followed quickly by Sakura's laughter and even Juugo's.

He nearly tripped because the sound of her laughter caught him off guard.

After he had regained his composure, Sasuke had flashed down the hall as fast as he could, cursing and wondering why the hell the sound of her giggles made him freeze.

He decided it was probably because he was stressed out while planning everything lately from Sakura's stay to his proposed destruction of Konoha. Yes, that had to be it. Not to mention that the sound was annoying.

Sasuke threw himself down on his bed and closed his eyes. The truth was, he was exhausted because of the same dream he had been having since he had killed Itachi.

The dream began with Itachi advancing towards him that night so many years ago in his village where Itachi had murdered the clan. As Itachi walked closer and closer to him, Sasuke stumbled back and fell on the floor. Itachi moved closer, his eyes a blood red.

Suddenly out of nowhere, a pink-haired girl would throw herself in front of Sasuke to protect him. Her arms were out as she shielded him from Itachi's view. Her back was to him but she turned her head slightly towards him before smiling and murmuring softly, "Sasuke-kun."

Then she would turn back towards Itachi and Itachi would suddenly morph into the smiling big brother that Sasuke remembered. He would walk forward with two fingers outstretched as he moved towards the girl. His fingers would then lightly poke her on the forehead.

The unknown dream would always end there.

And he didn't understand the reason behind the strange vision.

_Why was he dreaming of her?_

* * *

Hmm, aww Sasuke, you're dreaming of her!

*Sasuke glares*

Author shuts up.

Anyways, please review and let me know how you like it! This chapter is basically to illustrate the relationships Sakura begins to have with Team Hawk and how things are awkward between Sasuke and Sakura. But don't worry! There will be a Sasuke x Sakura confrontation next chapter! And then soon... the Sasuke and Sakura moments you have been waiting for! Again, please review, I sincerely appreciate the feedback :D.


	4. Coast Not Clear

**Author's Note**: Hello everyone! Well it's summer and you know what that means... more updates sooner hopefully! I am very sorry for the delay with updates but like I have mentioned before, I go to school and have been incredibly busy with that and work etc. blah blah blah.

I really appreciate all of the support that readers and reviews have shown for this fic! Thank you, you all keep me writing. A quick note: if you leave an anonymous review with a question that you would like me to answer, please leave an email address so I can contact you.

*For readers of my other ongoing fics: I am trying very hard to finish updates on Who She Deserves and Oh the Games We Play. Thank you for your support and patience. You guys are seriously the best. *tear*

Thanks again and please review. Without further ado...

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* * *

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**Chapter 4: Coast… Not Clear**

It wasn't that she was really _hiding_ per se. No, Sakura Haruno was not hiding! As the apprentice of the 5th Hokage, Tsunade, she was no coward.

There was no reason why she would be hiding from the dangerously, handsome man, who was also her ex-teammate and her childhood crush, who also basically broke her heart, crushed it in a blender, and proceeded to stomp on the remaining pieces. Oh and now, he was the reason she was being made to stay in the huge manor she was currently sneaking through.

Oh no, of course she wasn't hiding.

…

…

… Okay! So she was hiding. But in her defense, it wasn't as if the brooding Uchiha had sought her out either! In fact, he was probably going out of his way to avoid her as well!

Sakura had tried to (nonchalantly) ask Suigetsu why she didn't see any other members of his team in her hallway (*hint hint* Sasuke.) To which Suigetsu reminded her that she had met all members of his team, seeing as Juugo had visited her a few times and she had also had an awful run-in with Karin, besides Sasuke.

Of course Suigetsu had seen through her little act of trying to seem indifferent to the information. He told her that her hallway happened to be situated in a busy part of the manor, which explained why she had run into basically everyone in the large complex -everyone besides Sasuke, that is.

So frankly, Sakura didn't have to feel bad about avoiding the Uchiha because he was avoiding her as well. She would hold her head up high when she was sneaking down her hallway to stretch her legs!

Sakura slowly peered out of her doorway as she looked down the hallway to make sure the coast was clear. Clear of what, you ask?

Clear of Sasuke.

Checking the right and left, Sakura decided it was clear enough.

Ever since she had been captured, Sakura had avoided the raven-haired man like the plague. Whenever she heard footsteps coming down the hallway or sensed a strong chakra passing by, she made sure to stay in her room.

Except of course the other day when she had walked face first into the person she was trying oh so hard to avoid.

* * *

_After becoming thoroughly annoyed with being cooped up in her room all day, Sakura decided to take a quick walk down her hallway and stretch her legs like she usually did._

_Poking her head out of the door, Sakura quickly glanced down one side of the hallway as she walked backwards out of the room._

_Perhaps it would have been smart to check the other end of the hallway as well because no sooner had she turned around, she walked straight into someone._

_And not just someone… Sasuke Uchiha._

_Her body hit a firm chest and she stumbled backward, losing her balance._

_Immediately, two hands reached out and pulled her forward roughly. Again, she lost her balance, her hand flailing to grasp onto something to steady herself._

_The pair didn't move. _

_When Sasuke had tried to steady Sakura, he accidentally used too much of his strength and… well now they were in quite an awkward situation._

_Sakura's hands had grasped the first thing they could… this being Sasuke's shirt of course. And Sasuke had pulled the girl towards him so hard that she had fallen into his arms. His own hands were at her waist, holding her body steady against his. Their faces were about 2 inches from each other, their shaky breathes mingling with each other._

_Both were staring at each other with a look akin to that of a deer caught in headlights._

_For once, Sasuke's expression showed that of utter surprise and shock. After walking around aimlessly for the morning, Sasuke suddenly realized how incredibly hungry he was._

_He could either 1) take the long route to the kitchen and avoid having to possibly bump into the pink-haired ninja or 2) take his chances and go down her hallway as a shortcut to the kitchen. _

_Sasuke looked down at his stomach. Man, was he hungry! He opted for taking a shortcut through Sakura's hallway. Plus, it wasn't like he was definitely going to bump into her or anything. No. The girl had so far proven that she was as evasive as the Uchiha himself! No way would he run into her._

_Feeling quite confident in his reasoning, Sasuke began to walk down the hallway._

_As he was just passing the pink-haired kunoichi's room, he suddenly heard a door open. Without thinking, he turned around and saw the back of a pink-haired head as the girl tip-toed backwards before turning around with a triumphant grin on her face._

_That is, it was triumphant up until she turned around and walked straight into the dark-haired boy._

_And now here they both were, staring into each other's faces with shock and utter surprise._

_If anyone were to pass the hallway at this moment, it would seem as if the pair was locked in a passionate embrace with Sasuke's arms around Sakura's waist, her own delicate hands resting on his chest, their faces inches away._

_Sakura gazed up into dark onyx black eyes and a perfect face framed with bluish-black spikes of hair. He was so… beautiful. She couldn't help but stare at him; his strong jaw and aristocratic features… and God, her heart seemed to be flouting with familiar feelings that she thought she had squashed._

_And then… she pulled away from the man as if he burned her._

_Because in a sense, he did._

_Sasuke blinked and saw her door slam shut in front of him. Slowly, his face rid of the surprise and shock and back into the emotionless mask as he continued towards the kitchen._

* * *

It was with that thought that Sakura Haruno tip-toed out of her room to walk to the end of the long hallway and back. However, as soon as she had deemed the hallway "safe," aka Uchiha-free, a hand touched her shoulder and she shrieked and jumped around.

There stood Suigetsu, a grin plastered to his face as he looked down at her. Suddenly he couldn't hold his laughter in anymore and doubled over in hysterics. "You… must have… jumped… at least… 20 feet into the air…" he said, wiping tears from his eyes.

Sakura glared at the gray-haired man, her arms across her chest in rage. "Suigetsu! You scared me! I thought you were-" She quickly shut her mouth when Suigetsu's eyes fastened onto her.

"You thought I was…" Suigetsu prompted while he straightened up to look at the girl who was now having a staring contest with the ground.

"No one," she mumbled softly.

"So you're saying that you aren't maybe, I don't know say, hiding from a certain someone?" Suigetsu pressed on.

Sakura blushed slightly at being caught but shook her head. "No."

"Not a certain dark-haired grumpy guy also known as your ex-teammate, Sasuke Uchiha?"

Sakura seemed to be having a conversation with her feet as her eyes stayed glued to the ground. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Suigetsu sighed and ran a hand through his bluish-gray hair. He had seen the way the boss man had been avoiding the young kunoichi's room. The Uchiha would rather walk 10 minutes out of the way instead of simply walking down the hallway. And the few times Sasuke did walk through the hallway, he would simply flash quickly down the hall and then resume his normal pace.

The pink-haired girl was no different. Suigetsu had been visiting Sakura regularly to keep her company and frankly, he was definitely interested in her. He once found her crouched on the floor in front of the door, as if she was peering under it to look into the hallway. When he had questioned her on her strange behavior, she had simply claimed she wanted to stretch her legs outside but didn't want to bother anyone else in the hall.

Of course Suigetsu knew she was really worried about running into the dark-haired Uchiha.

If only he could figure out what history the two had. There was definitely a story there.

Then an idea ran through his head. Suigetsu gave Sakura a crooked smile and the girl looked at him with suspicious emerald eyes.

"Aren't you a little tired of staying in this room and only stretching your legs in this hallway?" Suigetsu said, putting the bait out.

"Okay, I'll bite. Where are you going with this one?" Sakura said.

"Only that I think it's about time our little captive got a look around the Uchiha manor."

Sakura's eyes widened. "W-w-what? No, really Suigetsu… it's okay… I do-"

"Sorry, babe, but you're the captive here. I'm afraid we're going to do what I want to do," Suigetsu cut her off.

Sakura gazed at him for a moment before she nodded her head lightly. "Okay, fine." _There was always that possibility that she wouldn't run into the Uchiha, right?_

Suigetsu grinned and grabbed the pretty pink-haired girl around the waist, spinning her around as she shrieked and protested.

* * *

Sasuke lay on his bed, looking at the ceiling. His curtains were pulled closed with only a tiny ray of light escaping and finding its way into the otherwise dark room.

After all these years, he was freed from his revenge… yet he still didn't know what to do and what he wanted.

Besides the defeat of Konoha of course. And the revival of the Uchiha clan.

And the key to both was…

Well, he wasn't too sure.

All he knew was that he was exhausted from sneaking past Sakura's room all week and avoiding the hallway. He never noticed how convenient the hallway was before he had needed to use different detours to get to his room, the kitchen, the rest of the entire manor!

Argh! He was an Uchiha for God's sake! He didn't shouldn't need to sneak around. It was downright embarrassing!

Yet he wouldn't give in because the pink-haired kunoichi was avoiding him too.

And frankly, their encounter had been stuck in his head, the memory replaying itself repeatedly.

It was… annoying.

She had changed so much. When he first saw her that day she was bought to the Uchiha compound by Suigetsu, he hadn't _really_ looked at her. But when she ran into him, he couldn't really help it.

Her face had lost the childlike-roundness. It was now more refined. She had grown taller. Of course not as tall as him; he was still a least a head taller than her. Her body had matured to that of a woman's. Pastel pink hair was grown out to a little past her shoulders.

But besides her physical features, she had changed. Sasuke could sense a much stronger chakra emitting from the girl before she had a chance to mask it. And in her eyes, those emerald eyes that only seemed to become a more fixating feature now that she was older, in those eyes there was a strength, a fire, Sasuke didn't see in her when they were younger.

His thoughts went back to the woman.

Sakura was here. Now. Somehow, she was here. And now that his revenge on Itachi was complete, and wrongly placed…

That was just it. He had left Konoha precisely for that reason. To kill Itachi. And now that he had, he had learned the truth.

That Itachi was innocent and that Konoha had ordered him to kill the Uchiha clan.

One of the reasons he was avoiding Sakura was because he wasn't sure what to do now. He wasn't sure what his answer would be if she asked him why he wasn't returning to Konoha. He wasn't sure of a lot of things.

And it bothered him.

He still remembered the time he had to say goodbye to her. They were but children back then yet she still claimed to love him while he was in love with taking his revenge.

"_I… I love you more than anything!"_

Her voice from that night reverberated through his head and he closed his eyes.

Would she still be the same little girl he knew from his gennin years? The same girl who would take any and all moments to tell him she was in love with him or to ask him out on a date?

Could it be possible that after all these years and everything he had put her through… did she still love him?

_Could she still love him_?

Maybe she had moved on, like he had intended for her to do in the beginning so that she could leave him alone.

Moved on to someone who could actually be there for her.

_She always did have a lot of admirers_, Sasuke thought grimly. For some strange reason it bothered him. It annoyed him to no end why he was concerned about the pink-haired girl at all!

Maybe she moved on with Rock Lee, the boy with a bowl haircut and thick black eyebrows. He had always been infatuated with her.

An image of the two came into his head and Sasuke dismissed it easily. No way, he was still too "unique" for her.

That new guy, maybe that new guy on Team Kakashi, Sasuke's "replacement," maybe he made a move on Sakura?

An image of Sai, the pale faced boy who was now Sasuke's "replacement" popped into his head, fake smile and all.

Sasuke smirked and imagined Sakura pounding the boy's face in because of him smiling that fake smile all of the time. Nope, probably no 'Sakura and Sai.'

Perhaps she had found comfort with Naruto?

Naruto _had_ always been in love with Sakura from the beginning. Naruto could have moved into Sasuke's territory after Sasuke left Sakura brokenhearted.

The image of Naruto hugging a crying Sakura as they both bonded over the loss of their teammate entered Sasuke's head.

Sasuke scowled and shoved his face into a pillow. _Yeah, it's just like that idiot to take what's mine when I'm not around._

He froze and sat up on his bed.

_Wait a second… what's mine? Is Sakura really mine_?

Sasuke thought about it. The little pink haired girl had always been known to be pretty, not that Sasuke was ever paying attention. He was too consumed with his revenge to think about 'love and relationships' at that point. Evidently, she was both strong physically and strong-willed now, at least according to what he heard when he ran into Team Kakashi all those years ago. But was Sakura his?

More importantly, did he want her to be his?

No. He just needed her. She was a vital part in his taking revenge on Konoha. Yes, that had to be it. He needed her as bait. That was it.

All his thoughts were confusing and frustrating to sort out. He turned on his side in irritation to rest.

Not a minute had passed when he suddenly heard voices down the hall coming closer.

"And this… this is your precious Sasuke-kun's room," Suigetsu was saying in a sing-song voice.

Sasuke heard another shy voice. "He… he's not mine!"

Sasuke turned to see Suigetsu and Sakura standing in his doorway. Sakura was blushing from Suigetsu's comment.

There she was. The sight of her reminded him of their prior encounter a few days ago and the soft pressure of her small hands on his chest.

Sasuke's eyes locked onto her small frame as she continued to look at the floor in embarrassment it seemed.

"Sorry to bother ya, boss. I was just giving Sakura the ol' tour!"

Sasuke saw Suigetsu wink before he put his arm around Sakura's waist. Sakura's eyes widened in embarrassment and she pulled away from him.

Sasuke scowled. "Since when do we give prisoners a royal tour?"

Suigetsu laughed. "Sakura is no prisoner to me. I like to think of her more as my _personal_ captive." He grinned at Sakura.

Sasuke felt the urge to punch him and was surprised.

They heard a distant voice scream for Suigetsu. It seemed like Karin had found the rubber spider Suigetsu had placed on her bed.

"Whoops! Gotta go, babe. I'll walk ya back to your quarters."

Sasuke's mouth opened before he had a chance to think. "That's alright, Suigetsu. Sakura, come here," he ordered in his husky, indifferent voice.

They stared at him with surprise before Suigetsu shrugged and gently nudged Sakura inside the room before closing the door and leaving.

Sakura looked down at the ground. "Yes, Sasuke-kun?" Her voice was calm and she refused to look at him.

Sasuke felt a pang of something in his stomach. He got off the bed and stood in front of her, angered at her refusing to look at him.

His hand outstretched and grasped her shoulder roughly, trying to find some familiar fear in her to assure him that she was exactly the same, weak little girl from his past. "Sakura…"

Her head snapped up and she took a step back, breaking away from his touch. Again, he felt a sudden pang.

"Sorry to bother you, Sasuke-kun. I should head back to my quarters… I am, after all, only a prisoner to you." Sakura had made the last part into a statement but she was really asking him. _Was she anything more than a prisoner to him_?

Sasuke felt himself grow surprised but quickly adjusted his face back into an emotionless mask before he allowed her to see.

Her calm behavior was irritating. Where was the little girl who should be jumping up and down in ecstasy that she was here with him? Why wasn't she taking the opportunity to again claim her love for him?

All she was doing was standing there in her worn out ninja clothing.

It was beyond annoying and Sasuke felt the urge to grab her and shake her until she woke up and acted like the little girl he knew from his past.

His eyes however, traveled down to her arm where he saw her hand balled up into a fist as it shook slightly.

He smirked. So she did feel something from their encounter.

"Sasuke-kun-"

"We've known each other for a while now. Drop the -kun," he ordered briskly.

Sakura looked at him sadly. "On the contrary, Sasuke-kun, I know nothing about you now. I should go."

With that, Sasuke saw pink hair disappear and he was met with the sight of a closed door again.

* * *

Did ya like it? Lemme know! Review please! :-D


	5. There Won't Be A Next Time

**Author's Note:** Hello everybody! Wooo! I'm on a roll here with the updating and publishing of new fics! So this chapter is long overdue, sorry, guys. You know how it is... school is a jealous factor in my life that requires all of my free time. Anyway, I sincerely appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read my fics and reviewing them and everything!

So this is what I ask of you guys; I understand it's often so much easier to just read over a fic and like add it to your story alert list or whatever, but I was sincerely appreciate it if you reviewed the fic. It really helps me as a writer and is an extra boost of inspiration for making me update the fic for you guys. Thank you all!

P.S. A quick shout-out to those who have checked out my other Naruto fics... I'm trying to update the ones that are multi-chapters ASAP!

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**Chapter 5: There Won't Be A Next Time**

Irritating.

It was irritating.

Irritating how since the arrival of the pink-haired girl, she already received more attention from everyone at the manor than Karin ever had.

The maids and workers all enjoyed visiting and waiting on the pink-haired girl.

She kept her quarters clean so that the maids didn't have much work to do.

She didn't bother to ask for anything.

She even went into the kitchen sometimes and helped the chefs cook for crying out loud!

She was practically a saint and it made Karin sick. She was a saint in comparison to Karin at least.

It was plain irritating.

Irritating how the strong shinobi of the manor, (missing-nin for God's sake!), were suddenly walking around with hearts in their eyes. It was enough to make Karin puke.

Suigetsu regularly visited the girl and strolled with her around the manor, joking and flirting with her every opportunity he could. But that didn't surprise Karin. Although she hated to admit it, she could see why someone would find the pink-haired girl fascinating at the very least. Her hair was pink, after all.

Even Juugo, who showed no interest in any sort of human socialization, enjoyed spending his time sitting next to the girl.

Karin grit her teeth.

But that wasn't what was irritating her the most.

It was that in the short amount of time that the pink-haired girl was staying at the manor, _somehow_ she had already managed to do what Karin had been trying to do for years…

Get some sort of reaction out of the dark-haired Uchiha.

Any sort of reaction! Karin was sure that if the pink-haired girl hadn't arrived, she would have, sooner or later, been able to convince Sasuke that he needed her skills. And she meant other skills than her chakra-sensing skills.

Sasuke was, after all, human. He would have realized eventually that to fulfill his goal of resurrecting the Uchiha clan, he would need a female. A strong female. Karin was the obvious choice had the other kunoichi not come.

He would have snapped eventually. That was the thought that had kept Karin going whenever Sasuke ignored her or she was sent away with harsh and indifferent words. Eventually he would have realized that he needed her, at the very least for the resurrection of his clan.

Karin smirked. Every man was a man when it came down to it. And Sasuke would have proven to be no different in time, she was sure of it. One day, Sasuke would notice Karin for more than just her chakra sensing abilities. It was for that day she was waiting.

Now, and Karin was afraid to admit it, there seemed to be some sort of competition where Karin wasn't sure of her standing anymore. When it came to Sasuke, at least.

It was unfair really! Karin had worked hard all these years, showing her affection for the handsome man, always staying by his side even after she knew he was only using her for her chakra-sensing skills, and proving that she was a capable and strong woman, suitable to stand beside the proud Uchiha.

But _that _girl had ruined everything. She had only been here a short time and already she seemed to be affecting everyone.

Especially Sasuke.

Suigetsu even mentioned something last week about a run-in between the Uchiha and the girl. Obviously his laughter and comments got to the handsome dark-haired boy because Sasuke made Suigetsu leave on insignificant missions for a few days.

Whatever it was, Karin was sure about one thing; Sasuke didn't realize yet what he felt. No one knew. It was strange but Karin was able to pick up on a difference in Sasuke's chakra.

The normally fluctuating and uncontrollable powerful black-blue fire of his chakra had some how… changed. At least whenever the pink-haired prisoner was mentioned.

His chakra seemed to calm slightly when the girl was nearby.

Karin couldn't describe it. Very little could make Sasuke's chakra levels change. It meant something when chakra levels changed. Perhaps the person was excited or angry, in rage or sadness. It could have been anything but it was definitely something.

Karin didn't know what had happened between them when they were teammates once upon a time ago. But she sure as hell wanted to know.

What was this girl- Sakura- to Sasuke? Was she really so important that on a subconscious level, Sasuke was being affected by her and didn't even know it himself?

Who was she?

It was _beyond_ irritating that Karin couldn't figure it out.

But one thing she was sure of. She would make Sasuke fall for her before anyone figured out what was between him and the kunoichi.

* * *

Suigetsu grinned as he dodged another kunai by materializing into liquid.

Sakura bent over panting, her hands resting on her knees as she looked up to see the gray-haired man's arrogant expression. "I don't know why I bother training with you at all, Suigetsu! It's not like it's helping me at all anyway," she grumbled.

Materializing in right in front of her face, Suigetsu scared the poor girl as she stumbled backwards onto her behind. "Because _you're_ not training, _I_ am. You, my pink-haired beauty, are the prisoner. You aren't going to be the one who needs to go out and kill people, ya know what I mean?"

Sakura's head snapped up. "Kill people? What do you mean?"

"Well, as dangerous missing-nin I'm sure you understand that we had to earn that title somehow. I mean, we ain't dangerous for nothing, babe," he shrugged.

"Who are you planning to attack?" Sakura nearly screamed out in horror, scaring Suigetsu as he flinched backwards from her outburst.

"I don't know," he admitted slowly. "Sasuke usually decides who we attack and when." He looked at the girl with interest.

She jumped to her feet, her hands grasping his shoulders as she pulled him towards her. "Do you have any idea who?"

Suigetsu frowned slightly before scratching his head sheepishly. "Nah, babe! Whoever the boss man says I guess! All I know is I could use a little mission right now. Ya know, a little excitement…."

Sakura blocked the rest of Suigetsu's ramble as her memory took her to another time…

… when she, Naruto, Yamato-sensei, and Sai had last run into Sasuke at Orochimaru's hideout.

Unfortunately, she also remembered Sasuke wounding both Naruto and Sai and stabbing Yamato-sensei with his chidori.

But what haunted her and froze her blood was the image of Sasuke rushing towards her, sword drawn.

Of course it was important to note that she was the one who was charging him first but in her defense, she wasn't going to hurt him. She just wanted to stop him from hurting anyone else.

But him, she wasn't sure if he was going to attack her like he did his other teammate whom he once thought of as a best friend.

She wanted to know that the young boy she once called her teammate was still somewhere inside that man that had stood in front of her- emotionless and uncaring.

But with him… she was scared to death of how close she'd have to get to find that out. Scared for her well-being, scared for her life, but most of all…

Scared for her heart.

* * *

_Sorry Sasuke, but there won't be a next time._

Sasuke stared at the ceiling of his room without really seeing it. Those words… those last words from his brother, continued to haunt him.

His eyes screwed shut as he berated himself for being so weak as to allow simple words to affect him so much.

_Sorry Sasuke…_

Suddenly a scene filled Sasuke's mind. Itachi stumbled towards him as Sasuke felt him stagger backwards only to find his back make contact with the wall behind him.

Sasuke felt himself fill with unfathomable dread and fear… the sensation of what was going to happen was mind-numbing.

His brother's bloody hand reached forward towards Sasuke's right eye, his fingers ready to claim the prize from their lifelong war.

Anticipation rooted Sasuke to his spot between the stony wall and his brother, his eyes craned open, unable to blink in fear that it might be the last light he would ever see before his supposed brother stole his vision forever.

Suddenly the outstretched fingers met with the skin of Sasuke's forehead, poking him in a cruelly reminiscent gesture that Sasuke had all but forgotten about until that moment.

_Sorry Sasuke, but there won't be a next time._

"You have nothing to be sorry about," Sasuke mumbled to no one in particular as he threw his arm over his eyes to block out the light that managed to stream in from the closed curtains.

If Itachi hadn't died, then he could do all the apologizing he wanted to do to Sasuke for killing his family, his clan, his _home_ and Sasuke would decide what to do from there.

_Sorry Sasuke, but there won't be a next time._

But he wasn't and as far as Sasuke was concerned, that warranted the blame be placed on someone else… something else.

Konoha.

_Sorry Sasuke, but there won't be a next time._

He wouldn't rest until that he saw the destruction of that village and every evil action it possessed laid to rest.

… _there won't be a next time._

There would have been a next time, if not for that village.

… _Sasuke…_

The pain was there again.

Suffocating pain.

The pain that Sasuke had thought he had gotten rid of a long time ago after he had vowed to kill Itachi had resurfaced but it was even stronger.

Sasuke's fingered clenched the crisp dark blue sheets of his bed. Mother. Father. Itachi. All of them were gone.

What darkness had Itachi had to live with for most of his life while he pretended to be the bad guy for the sake of that cursed village?

Why did he sacrifice his life, his sanity, and his soul for _that village _that would order such an atrocity as someone having to kill his own family?

Sasuke could feel his blood pumping faster. Even with his eyes squeezed shut he could see the crimson blood of his Sharingan activate beneath his lids.

_Sorry Sasuke…_

No. Stop.

"I can't take anymore," he muttered. Everyone always saw him as so strong and so emotionless.

But when he thought of his brother- for whom his hatred had seemed as natural as breathing- he now felt as if it had been another lifetime.

What was thought to have been lost a long time ago, the pain of losing loved ones, had reawakened. His brother had actually still been his brother from his memory. The evil vision of Itachi had somehow dissipated.

Sasuke Uchiha felt that his life had been wasted under an illusion.

All because of that village.

He couldn't sit back any longer. Not with that village continuing to exist while the memory of his family cried out over the injustices done to them louder and louder in Sasuke's head.

Sasuke's eyes snapped open as his chakra flooded around him in the room. In a flash he was by the door.

Yanking it open with more force then he had intended, Sasuke turned to walk down the hall, only to be met with Suigetsu's face leaning towards Sakura's.

* * *

"I guess I'll see you later then, Suigetsu," Sakura said softly as she looked at the tall, silvery-blue haired boy.

Giving her a toothy grin, he leaned forward, placing his hand next to her head on the door behind her, successfully trapping the beautiful girl. "Later hmm? I think I like the sound of that. Maybe later… at night, perhaps?" He looked her up and down before leaning his face towards her.

"You have such a one-track mind," Sakura said, laughing lightly as she put her hand firmly on his shoulder, restricting his movement from coming closer to her.

Blinking slightly, Suigetsu smirked. "I guess I do, when it comes to you, at least. Come on, what's a guy got to do to get invited in?"

Sakura gave a wry smile. "I'm sorry. I just need to get my mind off of something," she murmured.

"Why don't I help you? I'm sure there are a few things we can do to keep you… _occupied_," he leered as he moved his face towards hers.

Suddenly a loud bang from behind him made him jump and turn. There stood Sasuke, his eyes blazing and his fists clenched at his sides.

Suigetsu felt Sakura's hands on his shoulder, pushing Suigetsu back out of her room as she tried to hastily shut the door.

But in a flash of inhuman speed that only the handsome Uchiha could possibly possess, Sasuke wedged his foot in the door at the last moment, not allowing the door to close.

The dark chakra seemed to spark around the Uchiha viciously.

If Suigetsu didn't admit he was slightly unnerved (scared) by the sheer energy emitting around the other man, he would be completely and utterly lying. But he sure as hell wasn't going to show it to the other man, who always seemed to show up just when he was getting close to Sakura. Why the hell was that exactly? Suigetsu wondered.

"Sasuke, fancy meeting you here," Suigetsu said, a slight frown on his face as he stiffly looked at the man before him. "Sakura and I were just returning from some training."

The man didn't seem to acknowledge Suigetsu at all as he turned to look at Sakura, who was staring at the floor of her room, obviously upset with the fact that she had not been able to close her door fast enough.

The dark-haired man turned his back completely on Suigetsu as he pushed open Sakura's door and stepped inside, shutting the door behind his back.

"Hey man! Wait, just wha-"

"Leave, Suigetsu, before I have to assign you to a mission for a month," came the dangerous voice before the door shut completely on Suigetsu.

"I'm not just going to leave Sakura with your psychotic ass!" Suigetsu spat at the door.

Suddenly the door flung open again and Sasuke's hand had clenched itself around Suigetsu's neck, pinning him to the wall across from Sakura's room. "Do you _ever_ shut up?" the Uchiha whispered with venom in his voice.

With a clench of his hand, there was a light crack from Suigetsu's neck before the man materialized into liquid and reappeared next to Sasuke, his own fists coming to attack him.

But with a move so fast it was practically invisible, Sasuke had side-stepped him and pinned Suigetsu to the wall again, this time with his sword unsheathed, tightening slightly against the flesh of Suigetsu's neck as a dribble of blood streamed down.

"Move and I'll kill you," the Uchiha breathed as his left hand began to spark with the beginning of a chidori.

A soft voice reached Suigetsu's ears from behind the man in front of him. "Don't worry, Suigetsu. I'll be okay," Sakura said frantically, clearly feeling the Uchiha's chakra levels.

Releasing him, Sasuke turned and backed Sakura into the room, again shutting the door in Suigetu's face.

Massaging his neck, Suigetsu knew that the man seriously had some issues that he wasn't owning up to; nevertheless, it wasn't wise to try to pick a fight with the man when he was this… furious.

"Bastard," he muttered as he walked away.

* * *

Why did the room suddenly feel like the walls were closing in?

Sakura wondered if it had anything to do with the man in front of her.

When Sasuke took a step forward towards her and the room seriously seemed to shrink in size, to her at least, Sakura decided that was a definite "yes."

The aura he was emitting was more dangerous then Sakura cared to admit.

Her foot began to take a step backwards when she suddenly felt the air around her disperse and Sasuke reappeared in front of her.

Shocked, she stumbled backwards, her back hitting the wall with Sasuke following her movement, caging her in.

_When did he get that fast?_

Looking up into his face, Sakura was sure now that she had never seen such a sight; hauntingly beautiful yet terrifying.

She had never seen him make such a face.

Sasuke was usually so indifferent to everything, never forfeiting his blank mask for emotions. The closest he came to any sort of expression when they were genin was an occasional scowl at Naruto. But since seeing him again at Orochimaru's base, the boy she once loved looked at her with such blank indifference, she couldn't help but wonder if his black heart had finally died.

Feelings and emotions were just not Sasuke Uchiha's "thing." Not when they were younger. Not when they first became a team. Not when Naruto spat insults at him. Not even when Sakura spouted her undying love for him (which she now cringed at.)

Yet his face now… was of pure rage.

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Trouble's a-brewing! **Review please** and let me know how you liked it !


	6. Lose Control

**Author's Note: **Hi everyone! Happy holidays! Consider this a gift from me to my loyal readers! So I know it's been a while since I could update this fic but I appreciate everyone who has stuck with it. I am sorry it has been a while but as I've said before, I have a lot of work. That being said, I would really appreciate it if I didn't get comments like "Hurry up" or "Update faster next time." Seriously, it does nothing to encourage me and I've heard the same from other authors. In fact, its pretty irritating, especially since I try my best to update when possible. Thanks, (end rant.)

I'm going to try to update my other fics around this time as well. Some of you may have already checked out my other Naruto fic, Waking Up On the Right Side of the Bed, and seen that I updated that one earlier this week. **Thank you** to everyone who takes the time to post a review. It really does not take long and it really is a 'thank you' to the author for writing. Please Please PLEASE review after you read a fic!

Finally, thanks so much for sticking with me and my fics! You all are the best and it's because of you that I keep writing! Happy Holidays!

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**Chapter 6: Lose Control**

Last Time:

_The aura he was emitting was more dangerous then Sakura cared to admit._

_Her foot began to take a step backwards when she suddenly felt the air around her disperse and Sasuke reappeared in front of her._

_Shocked, she stumbled backwards, her back hitting the wall with Sasuke following her movement, caging her in._

_When did he get that fast?_

_Looking up into his face, Sakura was sure now that she had never seen such a sight; hauntingly beautiful yet terrifying._

_She had never seen him make such a face. _

_Sasuke was usually so indifferent to everything, never forfeiting his blank mask for emotions. The closest he came to any sort of expression when they were genin was an occasional scowl at Naruto. But since seeing him again at Orochimaru's base, the boy she once loved looked at her with such blank indifference, she couldn't help but wonder if his black heart had finally died. _

_Feelings and emotions were just not Sasuke Uchiha's "thing." Not when they were younger. Not when they first became a team. Not when Naruto spat insults at him. Not even when Sakura spouted her undying love for him (which she now cringed at.) _

_Yet his face now… was of pure rage._

Sakura's mouth fell open slightly.

She watched in awe as crimson red flooded into the onyx black of Sasuke's eyes as his sharingan activated.

No matter how many times she had seen him use his blood-line technique in the past, it was still mesmerizing. The strange colors… black morphing into red or was it red bleeding into the black?

As soon as he closed the door on Suigetsu's face, he turned to her, his prey, she imagined, and stalked towards her.

With every slow step he took forward, Sakura took a hesitant one back until her back was against the wall. But with Sasuke advancing forward, Sakura suddenly realized a few things.

In her time here so far, for some reason she had not felt scared of Sasuke yet. Not really. She supposed it was because, even though he had threatened her, Naruto, and the rest of their team a few years ago, he hadn't done anything yet to suggest he would hurt her.

Until now.

Sasuke was angry. That much was obvious to her. However, what quickly became apparent that he was also _dangerous._

Sasuke's entire body was tense and Sakura could see his normal calm façade breaking slowly, replaced with a searing, furious expression. His entire body was shaking from suppressed rage.

Directed at her.

But most of all, Sakura could feel his intent. His intent to hurt her.

It was so strong that a blinding fear suddenly overtook her. She had to get away from him. Desperately, she pushed herself off the wall her back rested on and turned towards anything that could save her.

The only door that led outside was blocked by Sasuke's advancing form. There was a closet door and finally, a window that led outside.

She was a konochi, she could take her chances leaping from the window to escape the unstable man in front of her. Racing towards it, she moved to kick the glass away when suddenly he caught her wrist and pulled her into the center of the room with him.

He released her wrist almost immediately and she took the moment to race towards the closet door. What she hoped to do when she got to it, she didn't know. Did she really think she could hide from Sasuke in a closet? Whatever her reasoning was, fear was clearly controlling her as she made a mad dash towards her salvation.

This time he flashed in front of the door, effectively blocking her off again. With a smooth step forward, he once again moved towards her.

Strong hands clasped her upper arms and slammed her back into a wall while his weight pinned her against it.

By now the intent to hurt her was so strong, Sakura felt she might pass out.

Her neck craned upward to look at Sasuke's face as his figure towered over hers.

Blood red eyes with a furrowed brow met her widened emerald eyes. She tried to struggle against his hold but he only tightened it, causing her to bite her lower lip at the painful grasp.

She choked back a sob as he slammed her back into the wall again, making her see stars for a moment.

She couldn't meet his eyes again. Her own squeezed shut as she swallowed nervously, her breath coming out in shallow pants.

His silence was deafening and threatening. Sakura tried to say something to fill the silence. "I-"

Both his hands suddenly reached up and slammed against the wall on each side of Sakura's head. She flinched from the sound of the impact. The gesture was purely Sasuke, using actions instead of words to convey what he wanted.

And right now his actions showed that he wanted her to shut up.

The action caused her to open her eyes and look up into his face. Breathing suddenly required effort as Sakura found herself forgetting how exactly to bring air into her lungs.

His face was mere inches away from hers, his eyes still spinning wildly.

However, if Sakura thought he was as close as he could get, she was wrong as Sasuke took a step forward and leaned his body impossibly close.

It seemed incredible that the room could shrink even more than it had when Sasuke had entered her room but Sakura quickly found that wasn't the case; now, there was just Sasuke.

His step forward was to prevent her from escaping, that much she could figure out as his height towered over her. His body was flush against hers, his chest to hers, legs knocking with her knees.

But still, his eyes were captivating her. That and his expression.

The tomoes in his eyes slowed to almost a stop before twisting and spinning wildly again. Ebony colored spikes framed Sasuke's handsome face, and because of their proximity, a few currently tickled Sakura's forehead and face. His lips, though he was hard and cold, ironically seemed to be soft, even though they were pressed into a tight line on Sasuke's face. Sakura could feel his warm breath on her lips, coming unevenly as he tried to control his fury.

"What were you _doing_?" he whispered in a voice so soft, Sakura had to strain her ears and focus just to hear him.

With Naruto, his anger was conveyed through shouting and destroying things. With Sai, it was simply drawing aggressively and throwing kunai. With Kakashi, it was the furrow of his brows and a masked frown on his usually happy face.

But Sasuke… Sasuke seemed to only grow more and more rigidly calm.

And that was dangerous.

"You are testing my patience," he breathed out, closing his eyes.

Sakura knew better than to relax. Sasuke closing his eyes did not mean by any means that he would back off soon. Instead, Sakura felt it was something akin to the 'calm before the storm.'

Sakura opened her mouth and in horror, realized that no words would come out of her mouth.

Suddenly a hand shot up and Sakura found her chin in a tight grasp. Sasuke's eyes opened and the Sharingan tomoes stopped momentarily before warping and spinning uncontrollably.

A gasp left Sakura's lips as Sasuke lifted her chin forcefully, his grip firm but not bruising. Slowly he inched closer to her. The hand holding her chin tightened slightly, making it impossible for Sakura to pull herself from his grasp.

Panic was setting in, rendering her speechless.

It finally hit her.

Blatantly.

She no longer _knew_ this Sasuke.

Since the last time she had seen him with Naruto, that much was obvious as Sasuke attacked Naruto and turned towards Sakura with similar intent.

She couldn't recognize this Sasuke. The one in front of her with such cold, fury.

"_Speak, Sakura_," Sasuke hissed, as he moved Sakura's chin higher and higher until she was staring up into his face.

Sakura was having trouble breathing by now due to her panic and because Sasuke was refusing to bend his head down to look at her, instead inclining her face until it was practically vertical. She feared that he might actually break her neck if he tried to raise her chin any higher.

_His stupid pride_, she thought. He can't even bend down a little.

Her anger quickly replaced the previous panic she felt. Pink eyebrows furrowed together as she clenched her teeth against Sasuke's now-bruising hold.

Instead, he had lifted her face until she was basically staring upwards at the ceiling, her neck craning just so that Sasuke could look at her.

"I… I was just talking… to Suigetsu," she spat out, jerking her face to try to rid herself of Sasuke's hold.

"Wrong."

Leave it to the Uchiha to ask a question and then deem the answer unworthy.

Her eyes widened momentarily before rage set it. "Wrong? What the hell do you mean, 'wrong'? You asked what I was doing! I told you I was just talking to Suigetsu," she shrieked at him, wrestling against him hold.

This stranger with such a beautifully haunting face. So familiar yet completely different.

"Sakura."

That voice. That _voice_ that reached her even in her deepest dreams_. _Always in the back of her mind. Always haunting her. Reminding her of her hopes, her losses, her greatest fears.

Her thoughts couldn't stop then. Not when he was pressed against her. Not with his warm breath on her cheek, his voice saying her name… _him_ being right in front of her_._

_I can't take it. _

_My head… _

… _my body… _

_Heart._

_You being this near…_

_I can't take it! _

That sinking feeling that she hadn't felt in _so_ long had slowly returned the moment Sakura laid her eyes upon Sasuke's crimson ones.

_What?… Still? _

_After all this time, I… I still want him to acknowledge me…_

… _or is it more?_

Sakura's eyes widened at the path her thoughts had suddenly taken. No way. She still didn't think of Sasuke like that. Not after everything that had happened between them. Not after he had tried to kill them all.

"I didn't think I needed your permission to speak to someone!" Sakura said furiously.

If anything, Sasuke's expression flickered to something darker than Sakura had ever seen before the impassive mask set back in. "Wrong," he whispered again.

Having enough of Sasuke's "interrogation," Sakura quickly channeled chakra into her fists, ready to set the arrogant Uchiha in front of her in his place.

But before she could even finish the movement of her arm upwards, a bruising sensation was suddenly around her wrists as she felt them slam into the wall behind her.

She grimaced.

Sasuke had grasped both of her wrists in one hand with a steel-tight grip before slamming their joined hands into the wall by her side, leaving her in the awkward position. He still held her chin upwards at an impossible angle while her arms were pulled to the side of her.

"Tell me then! Tell me what exactly I was doing since you obviously know better!" Sakura screamed, clenching her eyes shut so that she didn't have to see those empty eyes anymore.

_Empty. Completely empty._

_Unfeeling… towards anyone…_

_Least of all, you,_ a malicious voice inside her head said.

Her heart began acting strangely from the moment Sasuke had appeared in the hallway. Why? Why now did she feel so light-headed? Why was her heart racing, her pulse quickening?

She didn't want to think it was because of the man in front of her, but what else could it be? It was him.

It was _always _going to be him.

What the hell made her think she could get over him so easily? Sure he had left her, had made her cry in the past, but when he left, it did not allow her to move on.

For her to truly move on, she needed to see him everyday and fall _out_ of love with him. Yet she knew even if he had not left, she would never get over him. Because seeing him everyday would make her fall for him again and again.

But him leaving… only prolonged the feelings she currently battled with. She didn't want to believe that she would always be in love with the traitorous man in front of her.

_Now is the perfect opportunity to get over him_, her inner reasoned. That's right, get over him now while you're near him. Use this time to finally move on from the one-sided crush she had to endure all her life.

_Especially since there is nothing there of the boy who left you._

That's right. There was only a stranger in front of her with a familiar face.

Hesitantly, she opened her eyes and looked at the man in front of her. His chakra rolled around her in angry waves, surging into lightening-like sparks.

Upon seeing her apple-green eyes open, Sasuke moved his face to the side of hers.

Sakura froze. She could feel his warm breath against the small hairs on the nape of her neck.

His fist holding her hands clenched and her face contorted in pain. Turning his head towards her profile he pressed his forehead harshly against the side of her face, his nose pressing against her cheek.

To an outsider, it might seem like a couple in love, a young boy pressing a kiss to the ear of his lover.

Suddenly he released his hold on both her chin and hands before fisting his hand and slamming it into the wall.

Directly next to Sakura's head.

She flinched and instantly cursed herself for appearing so weak and scared. She couldn't really help it though, not with the murderous aura he was emitting around him.

The hand in the wall clenched and Sakura could see the muscles of his arm work as he fisted and relaxed the hand over and over again.

Was he trying to calm himself down?

She had never seen the Uchiha lose control but the panting against the side of her head suggested that he was making an effort not to do the same to her face as he had done to the crater in the wall.

"I'll tell you. You were being _fucking_ annoying," he breathed on the side of her face before releasing her against the wall.

Sakura's eyes widened before she heard the door of her room slam shut.

She crumpled against the wall and sagged to the ground.

The words reiterated in her head.

Fucking annoying.

_Annoying_.

* * *

_Annoying. She was so fucking annoying._

He flashed into his room, scaring the poor maid that was trying to tidy his room up.

"Leave," he all but growled and she fled, scurrying down the hallway.

He was breathing hard, the aftermath of his anger still coursing through his body.

Sakura.

He wanted to hurt her so badly. He was so close to it too until he suddenly stopped when he caught hold of her emerald eyes, crippled with fear and uncertainty.

Uncertainty about him and what he would do.

It wouldn't have stopped him until a memory he thought he had long forgotten, awakened in his head.

Her eyes held the same uncontrollable, desperate fear that he had seen reflected in his own dark irises when Itachi had stepped towards him in their final battle.

He had seen his fear reflected through his brother's eyes.

And the same fear was present in Sakura's eyes.

He had never seen it there before. Not in her emerald eyes.

Not when looking at him.

The thought of his brother and the foreign look in Sakura's eyes brought him back from his darkness.

He wouldn't lose himself because of his _stupid, insignificant_ ex-teammate. He wouldn't lose sight of why he needed her alive.

To use as bait to lure that dobe away from his precious village so that he could walk in and destroy it before dealing with his ex-teammates.

He would not lose control. Could not. His future goals were too important for that.

* * *

Well? What did you think of Sasuke's little temper tantrum? And we're finally progressing a bit more with our favorite couple! Er... at least Sakura seems to be thinking more about what she felt for Sasuke... Sasuke's... well, Sasuke is thinking only of his revenge.

**Please please please R E V I E W! **


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